by Michael Aprile

THE WORLD IN 2014

2014: War of the Worlds

The Big Picture

The headline sounds dramatic, I know, but it’s a pretty accurate metaphor for 2014. All the astrology points to an ongoing war between the old and entrenched and the new and revolutionary—personally, politically, economically, environmentally and in cyberspace. This is a year when the stakes get higher, when the tectonic plates of the Pluto/Uranus squares between 2011-2015 grind together for the fifth and sixth times out of seven.There will be no turning back. We’re now well and truly out of the shock and awe phase of amazement at seemingly solid institutions such as banking, the Church, the political binary system, naïve assumptions of living in a democracy and the assumed global dominance of the USA collapsing in front of our eyes through corruption, internal warfare and revelations.

Although the upheavals in the last four years have seemed revolutionary and unprecedented, they will prove to be only the lead-up to real and irreversible zeitgeist change. 2014-16 will be the years when the world turned upside down affects you—and me—and all our friends and neighbors at a visceral level we can’t ignore any longer. Time to stand up and be counted!

In case this all sounds doom and gloom, the Year of the Wooden Horse—not experienced since 1954—will also bring spontaneity, inspiring visions and a kick-over-the-traces wild ride. In Chinese astrology, the Horse year is considered a fortunate year, bringing luck and auspicious events . The Wood Horse year is a time of fast victories, unexpected adventure, and surprising romance. It is an excellent year for travel and the farther away and off the beaten path the better. Energy is high and production is rewarded. Decisive action, not procrastination, brings victory.

But you have to act fast in a Horse year. If you are not 100% secure about a decision, then don’t do it. Events move so quickly in a Horse year that you don’t want to gallop off in the wrong direction. On a global scale, expect some world economies to become stronger while others experience economic chaos and collapse. Under Horse’s strong influence there is no middle ground. Anticipate extremes in stock markets, fluctuation of prices, and general chaos in all things financial. There will be wars, battles, and skirmishes all over the world. Middle-class economies are developing with emerging markets in many places including Egypt, Turkey, Brazil, and India. But there will also be protests for fair development, even wars. Wood Horse 2014 will be a wild ride as the world changes, and changes fast.

January–May 2014: the Catalyst, Mars in Libra

Between December 8, 2013 through to July 2014—with an unprecedented eight-month stay in one sign—Mars will trigger, then retrigger, a Grand Cardinal Cross among Uranus, Pluto, and Jupiter. Think of it as the planetary archetypes of revolution, truth, conflict and irreversible transformation pulling in four different directions—something’s got to give. This Grand Cross occurs twice from late December through January 12, 2014, then more critically, from April 20-24 to May 14, 2014.The most challenging months in 2014 for volatile instability are January and April.

Mars the Warrior is uncomfortable in Libra, turning passive-aggressive when the veneer of charm doesn’t work. Yet it’s worth keeping in mind that Mars in Libra is the skilled diplomat, always seeking a win/win solution. Maybe when the nuclear rods are moved at Fukushima, there will be international co-operation instead of nationalistic face-saving. Let’s hope that there will be more examples of recent Syrian and Iranian global negotiations. It will be a very challenging time for all of us with plenty of energy available to make changes. The issue is how will we use it? If you have planets and points between 9-15 degrees Libra, it’s going to be a turbulent ride.

The exactGrand Cardinal Cross occurs on April 22, 2014, at 13 degrees Aries/Cancer/Libra/Capricorn, only 6 days after the April 15 total Lunar eclipse (lasting an hour, during which time the Moon will turn red). The United States in particular will be under enormous internal and external pressure as its natal Sun square Saturn are right in the path of the Cardinal Cross. Issues of homeland and global security, cyber-warfare and economic fragility will become impossible to ignore. There will be multiple emperor’s-new-clothes moments as more and more citizens see how much of their lives are controlled by a few. Old tactics of divide and rule will become glaringly obvious.

Mid to late April will bring extreme weather and seismic events across the world, military action, volatile financial markets, police and military force against increasing public demonstrations. Fortuitously Jupiter trines Saturn May 24 as Mars turns direct, stabilising the financial markets.

2014 Eclipses

The cosmic wild cards known as eclipses will shift over the next two years from the change-resistant fixed Taurus/Scorpio axis to action-oriented cardinal Aries/Libra. The North Node of Fate leaves Scorpio for Libra on February 19, 2014, putting relationship issues of all kinds on the front burner.

Eclipse Dates 2014

April 14 Lunar eclipse at 25 degrees Libra

April 28 Solar eclipse at 9 degrees Taurus

October 8 Lunar eclipse at 15 degrees Aries

October 23 Solar eclipse at 0 degrees Scorpio

Anyone with planets or points in early degrees of Taurus/Scorpio and mid to late degrees of Aries/Libra will be affected directly by these eclipses. Remember, eclipses are times when events can change in the blink of an eye. Their impact can often be felt up to a month before and six months after the exact date.

Summer-Autumn: Jupiter in Leo

Jupiter, archetype of wisdom, truth and vision, moves into Fixed Fire sign Leo on 17 July to stay until summer 2015. After a difficult Spring and early summer, this will herald a very welcome sense of possibility, expansion and optimism.

On September 26, the Great Benefic makes a flowing trine with Uranus in compatible Fire sign Aries, encouraging change, novelty and new inventions. Look out for visionaries and inventors who will make impossible dreams come true, for medical, technological, scientific and space-travel breakthroughs. These revelations could be pretty shocking. Both Uranus and Jupiter are about freedom. Jupiter as traditional religion could also benefit from Uranus’s enlightening influence. This trine may bring a reinterpretation of what religion means, which could shatter our belief systems. The October 8 Lunar Eclipse at 15º Aries falls right in the middle of this and is conjunct the Uranus part of the fire grand trine. This could be the great day of revelation.

October-December

This period is volatile, raising unresolved problems and issuesfrom April and May’s upheavals. Mercury goes retrograde between 2-22 October in Libra /Scorpio, along with two Mars-ruled eclipses. The sixth out of seven Uranus Pluto squares arrives on December 15.Finally, on December 24,Saturn enters mutable fire sign Sagittarius for six months.

Themes of 2014

Evolutionary breakthroughs, Uranus square Pluto

Relationship dynamics, Mars in Libra

Power plays and power shifts, Jupiter opposite Pluto

Action and confrontation, Mars square Pluto

Invention and innovation, Jupiter square Uranus

Rebellion, revolution, accidents, Mars square Jupiter

To thrive in the year of the Horse, instead of merely surviving, the more you keep an open mind and develop a willingness to take a few calculated risks on your own behalf, the better. Be decisive even when you’re faced with the unfamiliar. Trust your instincts and align your life with your highest values. Walking your talk by collaborating with likeminded people is crucial. The worst thing you can do is to pull the covers over your head and wait for it to go away or to jeopardize your financial security. If you take only one thing from this article, make your 2014 mantra “It’s all to play for!”

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something—your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” ~Steve Jobs

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Joni Patry 2014 Vedic Astrology Predictions

As I’ve thought about this post, I think I had no idea what Drunvalo actually meant when he said that it would look like there is no way out, and then the way will open. I think we are just now beginning to enter this time. After the holiday, it looks like we’re in for about three months of a very tough time.

World famous Vedic astrologer Joni Patry gives you her shocking predictions for 2014. Prepare yourself for the new year.